When it was purchased in 2003 for a mere $43.5 million, Segal had indicated his company would be holding on to the income-producing office building for the long haul. That was when it was only about 72 percent leased. Today, the financial center is 98.5 percent leased; Fairway is 97 percent leased.

The big dollars proved to be big persuaders. "It's higher than some high-rise buildings in Miami or downtown Fort Lauderdale," Merin said of the per-square-foot prices paid.

Keep in mind, this is all pre-. But Merin, whose firm handles 1.1 million square feet of office space, questions whether Scripps will boost prices: "I don't know how much higher that it can really go," he said.

So far, neither the company nor its attorney is talking, but Bankruptcy Court documents confirm that has filed for protection from creditors under Chapter 11. It's at least $10 million in the hole.

The acquisition firm is connected to the better-known , the West Palm enterprise that last year snapped up the 134-room for $42 million and the 106-room in Lake Worth for $13 million.

However, it's not clear what impact, if any, the Chapter 11 filing would have on Ceebraid-Signal.

This is the kind of tax bill most of us long for: Zip. Zero. says it won't be hitting up Boca-based time share concern for $28 million in real estate sales taxes. Less clear is whether the state will attempt to tax the use of Bluegreen's Tennessee property by non-Tennessee purchasers. The tax and time share debate is much bigger than Bluegreen or Tennessee, though. The issue turns on the swapping of time share units with other owners — a key selling point of many packages these days.

Struggling with that rent payment? Struggle on: predicts asking rents for West Palm Beach apartments will grow this year by 3.1 percent to $1,068 per month, while effective rents — rents actually paid — will grow by 4.1 percent to $1,020 per month. That's assuming you find a place. M&M predicts the vacancy rate will compress to 5.3 percent and the number of new units coming on the market will be a skimpy 700. The apartment demand will come mostly from education and health care workers — think teachers and nurses — already squeezed out of the home-buying market. So is there any silver lining to the dark cloud that is apartment scarcity?

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